Memory
by cheerful-angel57
Summary: [COMPLETE.]SetoXSerenity. Teenage life can be difficult, and proves so for the complicated lives of Kaiba and Serenity. But will bringing them together be anything short of a miracle?
1. Chapter I

**Memory **

By cheerful-angel57

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This story is dedicated to cuteperidot816, my best friend!!! Aw, how sweet! Joke. This is for you because you always help me and never expect anything in return. And I can always count on you. Ooh… how sweet! Hehe.

A/N: Okay, another one of my insane SetoXSerenity fics. I just LOVE them, I don't know why. Let's use a different term, um… I'm ADDICTED!! Hahaha. Expect more SetoXSerenity from me because I positively HATE SetoXTea. SetoXSerenity is a better couple for me.

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh!

Summary: SetoXSerenity. Seto Kaiba is an arrogant young CEO who doesn't believe in love, or friendship, or hope. But an arrival of a girl in school triggers his past memories of a girl who looks exactly like her…

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**Chapter 1**

Seto Kaiba was known for being an arrogant CEO of Kaiba Corp. But nevertheless, he was also a student at Domino High. Usually he was followed by his personal fan club and so many girls had crushes on him.

His life was nearly perfect-his genius IQ got him lots of awards and his teachers always predicted a good future for him. But they were scared of him too. His power and arrogance shielded him from other people. He was rich, powerful, handsome and intelligent. Could anyone ask for a more perfect life?

His one enemy was the mutt, who was called Joey Wheeler. Everyone knew that he hated and despised and even abhorred Joey Wheeler. Actually he also hated Yugi and all the dorks, but mostly it was Joey he pinpointed at. He took out all his nuisance qualities at Joey, whenever he was angry he would just come and bug Joey to piss himself off. This was one of his favorite morning activities.

In fact he strolled into the school hallways at around 7:45 A.M. to go to his locker. People he passed gave him frightened looks-they were afraid of him. And there were girls who gave him coquettish smiles, probably those who were in love with him.

He was not ignorant to all these feelings as he passed by, but he sure kept quiet about them.

Suddenly he saw a beautiful young girl with straight, brown hair that flowed down her back and with the prettiest of faces he ever saw. Her eyes were chocolate colored, turning to look at him, giving him one of the most beautiful smiles he had ever seen.

_'Who is that girl?'_ he at once thought. He had never seen her around the campus. He walked to his locker with this subject in his head that he bumped into Joey Wheeler. Everyone turned to look at him, as if expecting a bomb to explode.

"Well, well, well. How nice to see you today, _mutt_." Kaiba said nastily, putting emphasis with the word 'mutt'.

"Kaiba…" Joey said through gritted teeth. He had his fists clenched up so tightly that it looked like he was about to explode.

"Now get out of my fucking way, mutt. I have no time to argue with you today." Kaiba said icily, looking Joey in the eye.

"There is absolutely no way I am going to let you pass. Go sideways yourself." Joey said, his eyebrows so curved down that it almost covered his eyes.

"You're pathetic, mutt. Now get out of the way." Kaiba said with a smirk and shoved through, Joey yelling behind him about what a bastard he was. He didn't care. He never did.

_'Pathetic son of a bitch. Why'd I even know him anyway? I'd have been better off.'_ Kaiba cursed.

Joey was saying, "Now where is my sister?"

'Who cares about your stupid sister, mutt? Do mutts even have sisters?' Kaiba thought selfishly.

He focused his attention once more on the girl he had seen a while ago. He didn't even know why he cared. He didn't care about girls, even beautiful ones. He remembered the way her long auburn hair swayed down to her shoulders. And those deep-set, delicate and warm brown eyes…

_'Damn, stop thinking about that girl!'_ Kaiba chided himself furiously, angry that he even bothered to notice the girl. But there was just something about her he couldn't place… she just seemed somewhat… familiar.

Even if he knew that he shouldn't spend time thinking about girls, he eventually did._'Damned brain.'_ He hissed in his mind as he gave in to the many thoughts to ponder over for the day.

* * *

Serenity Wheeler grabbed her backpack and swung it over her slender shoulders. She felt just so… so happy today. She had not an idea why she felt that way.

_'Maybe it's because Joey introduced me to his friends today?'_ she thought, the happy memory of meeting new people brimming inside of her. Joey had introduced her to all his friends: Yugi Mutou, Tristan Taylor, Tea Gardner, Duke Devlin, Ryou Bakura and Mai Valentine.

Duke and Tristan seemed to like her a lot… in fact she even thought that they wanted to stalk her or court her.

Or maybe… just maybe it was that guy who saw her, and if she wasn't mistaken… stared at her. She sort of saw a glint of interest in his eyes until he turned away. She didn't know if he had an interest in her or what. But something about him seemed so familiar.

She remembered that she had a childhood friend but she knew not his name; and the memory of this boy came back into her mind. She could not distinctly remember everything that they had encountered together but she knew that they were good friends. He had slick brown hair, with bangs falling down his forehead and orbs of pure sky-blue. He had a kind look in his eyes and he was always dressed nicely, and went to the same school she went to.

**_Flashback_**

_It was the last day of classes when Serenity finally approached him._

_"Hey." Serenity said shyly, approaching the bench where he was. He was holding a thick volume in his arms, his thin brown hair combed neatly. His icy blue orbs turned to meet hers, also in a shy way._

_"Hey," he answered in a slightly disfigured voice._

_She sat beside him. "What are you reading?"_

"_Um, nothing." He said shyly._

"_No really, it's okay. I don't mind." Serenity said._

_He showed Serenity the cover of the book. _

"_Oh! I see. That's really…advanced." She said truthfully, seeing that he was reading a really long novel on history. He was very studious, nevertheless very intelligent. He always had a chessboard with him, and a portable laptop._

"_Hey, when we go to different schools… do you think you'll remember me?" Serenity asked._

_He looked up, shoving his bangs out of his eyes. "Yeah… I guess so." He said slowly._

"_I think I'll remember you. You're my best friend in this school." Serenity said quietly. She turned her gaze from him and looked at the sky, waiting for his reply._

"_I guess I will too." He said._

"_Promise?" she asked, extending her hand._

"_Promise," he said, interlocking his pinky with hers._

**_End of Flashback_**

Serenity sighed as she remembered that incident. It was in the past now. But the promise… and her teachers had always said that promises were meant to be kept, right? Well, she had never forgotten about her "best friend" in her childhood.

She had always pondered about it ever since she came back to Domino to have her eye operation, which had been successful because Joey had helped her. She owed him a lot.

And this guy… _'Oh man, I can't stop thinking about him… he looks exactly like him…'_ she thought, mulling it over and over in her mind that she had no idea what the others were talking about.

"Serenity? Are you all right? You seem… well, I don't know… in some kind of daze?" A voice snapped her back into reality.

"Um… sorry. I was just thinking." She said to Tea.

"Okay, hey listen, let's go to our classroom. We're in the same class, Serenity," Tea said dismissively and took my hand.

"Sure." Serenity answered and went with Tea.

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A/N: End of chapter 1! Hoo boy, I am having a very hard time writing because I got school. School's really tough now and I'm only in high school! Feh, how do I expect to survive in college? Anyway, I hope you like it, especially cuteperidot816. By the way, is it bad, good or definitely trashcan? Please tell me. Any kind of review is welcome. And those of you who do not like SetoXSerenity, don't bother giving me these kinds of reviews like, I don't like SetoXSerenity. Why'd you even read this story if you don't like SetoXSerenity? Okay, no offense meant, but I just want to make one thing straight. Thanks. (But, I mean, WHO would dislike SetoXSerenity anyway? THEY RULE!!!) Boo-yah! 


	2. Chapter II

**Chapter 2**

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Disclaimers: I do not own Yu-gi-Oh!

A/N: Hi there peeps! I'm back for another installment! Okay, so I'm supposed to be working on my other installment in DLM, but I was so ever tempted to write for "Memory"! Nothing, I was just kind of hyper today, ya know? Okay, on to the story then, folks! But before that, a little notes to my reviewers…

To:

**Lass: **Hey, thanks for the review! You don't know how much I appreciate it. Yup, Seren is younger than the rest of them but this time I intentionally made her in the same grade level as Tea and the others… it'll be easier for her to meet Kaiba that way… whoo!

**firefly of hell: **Seren is younger than the others, I know, but I really made her in the same grade as the gang… easier to meet Kaiba that way… but I really appreciate the review! Thanks for telling me what you think! I'm glad you're honest on what you think of my story…

**vendred 13**: Yeah! THEY RULE SUPREME! I just love them together… lol… yeah, that's a word in English… Cool, you're French? Never met anyone French before… cool! Slaps herself for being so inquisitive anyway, thanks for the sincere review!

**nkitty**: thanks for the support!

**Goten0040**: Really? They're green? Gee, didn't know that… other people say it's brown, but I'll research on it… I saw some pictures of her in which her eyes are kind of brownish… gee! Thanks for the review!

**Sorceress Vanessa: **Gee! Now I know her eye colors… thanks so much! I really appreciate your review! I luv your stories! Thanks a lot for reviewing me!!!

**Cute Peridot816**: WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO SIGN UP????? Haha. Sorry, no pressure. Anyway, hope you get registered soon!

**Subaru the Jaguar**: I read your "Ignorance is Bliss" and it's awesome! Keep it up! Luv ya!

**Lexi-chan**: hey there! Thanks for reviewing all my fics even if you don't know the anime or whatever I'm talking about…thanks so much, I really appreciate it…

**To other reviewers: **THANKS A MILLION FOR REVIEWING ME!! Haha. LUV YOU ALL!

Sorry for the quite long wait. Alright, this is for all of you guys out there who want more!

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Seto Kaiba sauntered into the classroom after he had a quick call with the principal. He had requested that he would not be put in special classes this term, knowing that he had supreme intellect and all… (A/N: Yeah right! Joke. He is intelligent but I don't think he should boast about it often.)

"Mr. Kaiba, where have you been?" his sensei asked him with impatience.

"To the Principal's office. Is there a problem?" Kaiba said impertinently.

The teacher was obviously scared of him, even if he was showing signs of evident rudeness.

"F-fine, Mr. Kaiba… s-sit down." Was the trembling stutter of his sensei.

'Ha. Stupid teacher…' he thought meanly.

* * *

Serenity Wheeler came in the room, totally breathless. She had lost Tea's lead but she was lucky she reached her classroom in time.

To her dismay, she saw the classroom sitting down in perfect order. She glanced around wildly for some sign of recognition…

Then she saw the solitary smirk in the front row. Her eyes met his face… The guy who had a place in her memory… or maybe it was some different guy… her so-called best friend in her childhood days didn't smirk like that…

"How may I help you?"

Serenity turned her gaze quickly to the teacher in front. "Um, hi… I belong to this class, I guess I just got lost." She said lamely.

"Okay then, but I have to mark you for being late. Do bring a school map around with you next time."

She sighed. Not a good start to the day. 'Damn it… I should have gotten a school map or asked Joey to tour me around the school…' she cursed to herself, regretting what she wasn't able to do.

She leaned on the wall near the door, waiting for the teacher to check his records.

"Your name?"

"Serenity Wheeler." She said in monotone.

"Okay, Miss Wheeler, I marked you down for late… now take a seat. Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize that there were no seats left…" he trailed off.

Serenity looked around. True enough, there weren't any seats.

_'Damn…'_ she swore inwardly.

"I guess you'll have to stand in the corner then." He said dismissively and began the lecture for the class. Serenity sighed and hung her head. This was NOT going well…

……

"Miss Wheeler, can you please answer my question?"

"Yeah?" she had been taking a short doze.

_'Damn… I don't even know what the question is!'_ she thought.

She straightened up. "Um… 264?" she said, glancing at the blackboard, looking at the one equation that her teacher had scribbled down.

"No, that's wrong. You're not listening… the question was on the book. Detention."

_'DETENTION???'_ She was so freaking out. This was so NOT happening to her… come on, first day at school, then she had a detention AND a late mark?

She opened her mouth to protest at the unfair trial but the teacher silenced her. "No buts, Miss Wheeler. I will see you promptly later at my office during dismissal."

THIS WAS SO NOT FAIR. _'He should reconsider!!!'_ she thought.

Sorry Serenity, but I guess he's not going to…

* * *

**RECESS…**

"Damn! That was a long 60 minutes of droning from your teacher, and you got marked down for late and detention, and you were standing up the whole time? That's UNFAIR, he should have done something about it…" Tea muttered.

"Yeah, don't make such a big deal out of it, Tea… I don't want my brother to know." Serenity whispered.

"What's that got to do with Joey?"

"He's NOT supposed to know that I got a lot of reprimanding today…"

"Fine. Whatever. But it's so unfair to you!" Tea repeated. "You can't just stand there and let yourself be beaten all the time by a teacher! Stand up to him!" She encouraged.

Serenity sighed. What words didn't Tea understand? "I said, give it a rest. For now, okay? I don't want any more trouble. Besides, if I protested, he might give me another detention." Serenity pointed out.

"Suit yourself." Tea said with a sniff of discomfort.

They walked on until they reached a deserted school garden. Serenity fingered the sleeves of her cream-white blouse, debating whether she should tell Tea about her secret.

But then, she needed to tell someone… she couldn't keep it locked in inside forever-it was a part of her. She was already up to the point that she was certain that she loved this childhood friend of hers. She remembered the moments they shared together, the near-to-happy moments she had with him… they were unforgettable.

So…

"Hey, Tee. Let's stop here, I need to tell you something." Serenity finally blurted.

Tea gave her a strange look. "Is it important?" she asked.

Serenity shot her a begging look. "Come on, I really, really need to tell someone. I need your advice-and your reaction."

"Okay." Tea said slowly, digesting all that Serenity had said. "You mean to say that you're telling me something when you don't even know me all that well?" Tea asked.

"Um, I was hoping we'd get to know each other better through this." She muttered.

Tea nodded and waited for her friend to proceed.

"Um, well… you see, I have this friend in my childhood… I've been thinking about him all day and I saw this guy today who looks very, very much like him and I was wondering if it really is him…" Serenity explained. She sighed. "It sounds ridiculous right?" she asked.

"No, it doesn't. That's really sweet… you remember him until now?"

"Yeah, I do. But it sounds really weird… honestly." Serenity buried her face in her hands.

They approached a bench and sat on it. "It's not weird," Tea said softly. "Tell you what. Why don't you describe him and tell me what he looks like." She said. "Maybe I can identify him."

Serenity hesitated for a while, but gave in. "Okay. Here goes… he has deep-set sky blue eyes, mahogany-brown hair that's combed neatly, and he's really handsome. I don't know, but he smirked at me during class."

Tea gasped.

"Why?"

"Um, nothing, nothing. Maybe I'll check out your class list. I kind of have an idea on who your mystery guy is." She said hurriedly. "I'll tell you later!" she got up from the bench as the bell rang, signaling the end of recess, and Serenity watched as she disappeared into the crowd.

'I think she's hiding something from me…' Serenity thought, but she brushed it aside. She had to hurry if she didn't want to be late again.

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**RECESS, IN A DIFFERENT POV…**

He barged into the guidance counselor's office after one loud knock.

"Good morning, Mr. Kaiba. How can I help you?" asked the counselor in monotone.

"I need to see the class list." He said curtly, walking up to the counselor's desk and sitting down across him, carrying his briefcase protectively.

"Okay, here it is."

Kaiba took the list impatiently from the counselor and browsed through it until he found what he wanted. "Mr. Ikegami-who is this Serenity Wheeler? Is she, by chance, a relation to the m- I mean, Joseph Wheeler?"

"Hmmm… Yes, she is."

"Ok." Kaiba said gruffly and strode from the office. He knew who she was.

* * *

Tea made her way smoothly through the crowd, struggling to go to different classrooms.

"Excuse me." She muttered until she reached the guidance counselor's office. "Hi, Mr. Ikegami. I was wondering if I could see the class list of Class A?" she inquired.

"Here." He said, ripping off a paper and handing it to her.

She glanced through it and knew who caught Serenity's eye.

'Oh man… how do I break the news to her?' she thought.

* * *

**DISMISSAL **

Serenity knocked loudly on the door. She was at Mr. Draken's (The teacher who gave her detention) office, and she was ready to receive her detention.

"Good afternoon Ms. Wheeler. Come in." he said curtly and she sat down.

"Wait here while I get some files." He said and went out of the office door. She sighed, slumping against the back of her chair. It was so boring, and she lapsed into a daydream…

**_Flashback_**

_The vivid image of her friend came to life again. "What's wrong?" she asked, seeing that he was so down, so unhappy… She hated seeing him like that._

"_My mum… she's… gone…"_ _he murmured, closing his eyes, tears sliding out of his eyelids. _

"_What happened to her?" Serenity asked, suddenly feeling sorry for him._

"_She's just… gone." He repeated. "The doctors say she died…" he murmured. He couldn't stop the tears from falling._

_Serenity's heart was filled with even more pity. "I don't know where my mom is, either." She said._

"_Really?" He asked, turning to face her._

"_Yeah. Dad says that she is with my brother. He said that I won't ever see her anymore." Serenity whispered. She felt tears spring to her eyes. _

"_At least we have something in common…" He said softly. _

_**End of flashback** _

"Now, Ms. Wheeler… your detention." Said Mr. Draken, opening the door.

Serenity took a deep breath. 'Please tell me it isn't anything hard…' she prayed.

"You're going to clean out the trophy room in the center of the school." Draken said, straightening out his glasses. Serenity wanted to laugh so badly.

_'That's it? That's a lame detention… but anyway, the easier the better!'_ she thought happily. "Ok, sir, if that's all…"

"Yes, go." He said distractedly and she closed the door quietly behind her.

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A/N: How was it? It SUCKS, right? Please R&R! You have every right to voice out your opinions… flames accepted! Thanks so much! Luv you guys! 


	3. Chapter III

Chapter 3

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A/N: Sorry that I kept this chapter too long... I had stinking school and I wasn't able to type this up... PLUS I had a stupid writer's block... Damn... but I gave this story a lot of thought, and I'm still considering what will happen next. Expect something complicated. So here you go... chapter 3 of Memory.

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

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Answers to REVIEWS...

**Cute Peridot 816**: Hey there! :) Thanks for the review!!!! I really appreciate it!!! :)

**Subaru the Jaguar/The Dark Angel Reborn**: Hehe! Cute review!! Loved it when you stepped on Seto's foot... bwahaha! He SO deserves it...

Kaiba: Hey, that hurt ya know!!!

Underworld Ruler: Yeah, I know! And here's another one steps on his foot

Kaiba: OW! S!!!

U.R: Oh well... sigh... thanks for the review by the way!!! Bye!

**Court 12**: You bet Seto will give her a hell of a time... poor Seren! Thanks for the review!

**Sorceress Vanessa**: Thanks for the review! Glad you think it doesn't suck... :) Kaiba and Serenity will probably meet in the next chapters... I'm still kind of thinking about it 'cause I really get writer's blocks all the time... sigh...

**Lass**: Glad you liked it. :) Yeah, they did meet at the last day of classes... in the second chapter it was after the last day of classes... probably the next school year or something... anyways, thanks for the review!!!

**firefly of hell: **Yeah, he is a jerk... Yep, it has a trophy room... at least in my imaginary Domino school... joke! Perhaps Kaiba and Serenity "moments" will come in the later chapters... sorry to let you wait... I want to make this a long fic... Nope, he's not mean to her just because she's Joey's sister... he's mean because... you know, teachers act that way sometimes... you feel like they're ganging up on you but they're not (Unless the teacher REALLY, REALLY hates you.) thanks for the review!

**To other reviewers**: Thanks so much for reviewing! Luv ya all!!! :)

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Chapter 3-Unexpected Meeting

Serenity came home, depressed. She didn't know why... just a while ago she had been so happy, knowing that her detention was light, if not that hard.

She was depressed for no reason. No, maybe it's because of her mystery guy, who of course we all know is Kaiba...

"Serenity... are you okay?" Someone approached her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, I am." Serenity answered flatly. She just wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. She finally turned to face the person who was talking to her-Duke Devlin. She knew that he had some sort of crush on her and wasn't that ashamed to show many signs of affection to her each and every day.

"I don't think you are... I've been following you a while ago for quite some time 'cause I stopped by the grocery on my way home, and I thought that you were... you know... feeling sort of depressed..." he said, looking at her face nervously.

She wanted so badly to roll her eyes. 'Alright, I am kind of depressed, but what's that to you?' she thought sarcastically. Why couldn't people just mind their own business???

"Um... I'm not, okay? So can you please leave me alone?" she said impatiently, trying not to sound rude.

"Okay... If that's what you want, I'm not stopping you." He said flatly, flashing her one last look of concern before turning to the other side and walking away.

She sighed in relief. This was so much better. She enjoyed the peace and serenity she felt everytime she was alone.

She forced herself to sit down on the bench on the sidewalk. She was dead tired... nothing to do. Nowhere to go... all by herself...

Then her eyelids felt heavy. She knew she shouldn't fall asleep in such a strange place to her, but she couldn't help it. Joey was so going to kill her. Then she closed her eyes, falling into the arms of a mysterious person.

* * *

DOMINO HOSPITAL...

Serenity Wheeler woke up in the complete solace of Domino's Hospital. She had no idea what happened and she had no idea what she was doing in there. All she remembered was blacking out and falling into the arms of a person... A mere shadow... something part of her memory...

Then her bedside phone rang. It rang two times before she picked it up, saying a simple "hello."

"SERENITY!!!!!!!! IS THAT YOU?????"

"J-Joey?" she answered, joyful tears coming to her face. Her brother was always there to look out for her.

"SERENITY!!! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU? YOUR NURSE SAID-"

"Um, Joey, not so loud," she told him.

"Okay. The nurse in charge of you said that you were still sleeping. And someone saved you anonymously!" Joey screeched into the phone.

"Not so-"

"Anyways Serenity, I hope you're fine. The nurse says you're alright, after all... you can sleep overnight at the hospital."

Serenity was about to ask Joey questions but he had already hung up before she could get a word out. She hung up with a sigh and flopped back down on her pillow. A night at the hospital was so NOT the night she was looking forward to. She guessed that she would just have to get all her answers in the morning.

* * *

MORNING. 7 AM.

He walked to the shadowy figure to his east; the beautiful woman sitting on the bench in a billowing white gown. He sucked in his breath. This was it... the moment he was waiting for. The moment when he could confess his love to this girl.

_She had long, chestnut brown hair and eyes the color of mahogany, and the fairest of faces he had ever seen in his whole life. He would give anything in the world just to look in to those warm brown eyes. _

_Finally she averted her gaze to him. Her eyes locked with his... He whispered, "Serenity..."_

The alarm beeped and Duke Devlin yawned, shutting off the alarm. He would have rolled off the bed if it weren't for the alarm clock. 'Stupid thing,' he thought, yawning. It disturbed his wonderful dream... a fantasy between him and Serenity Wheeler. "Damn, damn, damn!" he cursed. After a quick shower and change of clothes, he was eager to go to school. After all, his fantasy would be reality... sort of... He had no courage to tell Serenity about his feelings for her.

He grabbed a single piece of bread from the table and headed out onto the streets.

"Duke... hey, Duke!"

"Dude... what's up?" Duke faked a smile as he turned to face Tristan Taylor.

"Nothing, I was just wondering if you've seen Serenity today... The Wheelers weren't home when I called them yesterday." Tristan said casually, running a hand through his hair. Duke rolled his eyes inwardly. Tristan was so dense. So far, Tristan was Duke's only rival to getting what he really wanted.

"Serenity... Nope, I haven't seen her." Duke said quietly.

"Okay. See you at school." Tristan said and dashed off.

Duke twirled a strand of charcoal black hair around his finger, walking casually to school. He stuffed his hands in his pockets afterwards. He had every single intention of asking Serenity to be his girlfriend... He was just going to have to figure out how to get rid of Tristan, and pierce an arrow straight into Serenity's heart...

* * *

DOMINO HOSPITAL. 7:30 A.M.

"Okay, I'm coming to school today. Yeah I'm sure!" Serenity exclaimed to the phone.

"Are you sure Seren? 'Cause you still might need rest you know," Joey said doubtfully.

"Don't worry about me, Joey. I'm coming to school today, whether you like it or not."

"Suit yourself. But make sure you take care of yourself."

The phone call ended with a soft click. She dropped the phone in exasperation, tying up her hair in a ponytail. She didn't care... she was coming to school today, even if it was a drag. She would be missing a lot and she wasn't even sick in the first place... Suddenly her eye vision blurred. This wasn't supposed to happen... She couldn't see anything clearly.

Then her vision came back, perfect as ever. 'That was weird,' she thought. 'Ever since Joey paid to have my eye operation, I'd come back from that realm of darkness... but then, why did my vision blur so suddenly?' she stopped pondering for a moment and zipped up her blouse.

A few minutes later, she was able to arrive at school safe and sound. 'See, Joey. I can do things by myself.' She was sort of mad at Joey for not letting her become independent. She was not, after all, a baby. But Joey was treating her like one, and she didn't like it.

* * *

GARDNER RESIDENCE. 7:45 A.M.

"Just make sure she's alright ok!"

"Yeah, yeah, I got you, Joey," Tea said exasperatedly. She had been repeating this to Joey for over an hour. And she was getting fairly tired. He had called an hour ago on her cellphone when she just woke up. Boy, her friend could be so stubborn.

"Listen, I have to get to school, you know, I'm about to be late, bye." she said hurriedly, and without waiting for a 'bye', she hung up.

She ran to school as fast as she could, and reached it in record time. Serenity was waiting for her by her locker when she came rushing in.

"Hey, Tea."

"Hey, Serenity. I heard you ended up in the hospital today... how are you?"

"I'm okay." She said flatly. Tea could see that she was in no mood for conversation. They walked silently around the corridors until Duke Devlin approached them. Tea rolled her eyes as she saw Duke blush. She had known ever since that Duke had met Serenity that he had a humongous crush on her. Now she didn't even know what level Duke's liking for Serenity had reached.

"Hey," he said in a casual voice. "Glad to bump into you gals. I had no one to talk to..." he said quietly. He blushed again.

"Come on, Duke. What is it that you really want from us?" Tea said, wanting him to cut all the crap and get straight to the point. But before he could reply, a tall man shadowed over them.

"So I see that Yugi's gang is still incomplete. Where are the mutt and the others?"

Serenity looked up into the eyes of the fierce teenager who said a rude thing just like that, only to find out that it was the guy from her memories. She bit back a gasp and let Tea do the talking.

"Kaiba," Tea said through gritted teeth, "We're not doing anything to bug you. And will you please stop calling Joey that? You know he is not a mutt."

"Oh, but he is. You should see his doggish ways. He seriously needs a counselor to tell him to stop acting like a mutt and more like a human..." Kaiba said unsympathetically. He turned in Serenity's direction. "And you must be the mutt's sister. Pleasure to meet the sister of the pathetic mutt." He said maliciously, extending a hand to her.

Serenity was speechless for a moment but it hit her that she should defend her brother. She slapped his hand away in blunt rudeness. But she couldn't help it. (A/N: I mean, you have to stand up for your own siblings no matter how much annoyance they cause you, right?)

"MY BROTHER IS NOT A MUTT!" She yelled. Instead of retorting back at her, this Kaiba guy was actually giving her a cruel smile. "I'm merely wasting time trying to convince you. But you shall see his ways. As his sister, I advice that you give him the counsel he most rightfully needs." And with that final air of displeasure, he walked away.

"Don't mind him, Serenity, he is a jerk," Tea said. Serenity shook her head sadly. 'And to think that he was actually my friend before... he's changed so much...' she thought.

"If I were you Serenity, I would get the attentions of a guy who is much more... well, deserving." Duke muttered. He was blushing wildly now.

She made no answer to this strange comment, but she committed it to thought. She didn't need a guy who was so rude and a complete jerk to her. So in a way Duke was right. Even if Kaiba was indeed part of her memory... Memories can easily fade away. All she needed to do was forget about him.

* * *

END OF CHAPTER 3...

* * *

A/N: Chapter 4 soon to come! Please read and review... I'd appreciate any opinion of any kind. I also accept flames. By the way, there might be a bit of Duke and Serenity here, even if I'm not a fan of this pairing. Maybe even other pairings... tell me which pairings you want me to consider for the next chapters. Okay, that's all I'd like to say... thanks! :)


	4. Chapter IV

Chapter 4

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh!

A/N: Hey guys, thanks so much for reviewing the last chapter. I was pretty much cheered up after I read the reviews, and they simply brightened up my day! :) Thanks so much! :) Here's chapter 4 of Memory, enjoy.

ANSWERS TO REVIEWS... 

**The Dark Angel Reborn: _Hey, thanks for the great ideas! Yup, sure there'll be lots of Kaiba/Serenity... :) hehe! Thanks for the review!_**

**Tinyflyer02: _Thanks for the review! Glad you thought the chapter was great. I hope you like this one!_**

**RiterAnonymous: _Really? Thanks for the compliment! You're a good writer too. :)_**

**nkitty29 and Freak09: _Glad you loved it! Thanks for the reviews!_**

**mE: _haha... I don't like DukeXSerenity, but if it makes the story interesting, why not? Hehe... just a thought! Thanks for the review!!_**

**Black-Lightniing: _don't like DukeXSerenity either... I LOVE KaibaXSerenity!! Hehehe! :) Yep, if I match them up it'll only be temporary... haha!_**

**KatrinaKaiba: _Maybe I'll include Mokuba in this too... after all he is Seto's brother... and yeah, I like him too! He's really sweet to Seto... Oh, ok thanks for the information!_**

**VeryShortMidget: _Glad you liked the story! Hope you like the next chapter... _**

* * *

Chapter 4-Bad Mood

Duke Devlin sighed as he heard the bell. He was relieved. Now he could get out of this stupid classroom and meet his friends. He was so eager to meet up with Serenity that he found out his legs were moving really fast.

"Devlin!"

Duke spun around impatiently. "Yeah. Hey dude." He said quickly once he saw who walked up to him. His teacher in English was marching towards him in a brisk manner. He looked impatient.

"Devlin, remember, you have only tomorrow to hand that paper in!"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll remember." Duke said casually, twirling a long lock of his hair around his finger. His teacher gave him a short glare and marched away.

"What was that about?" a soft, sweet voice broke through his thoughts.

"Serenity!" he breathed quietly. "Nothing... just a paper that was due tomorrow." He said quickly, hoping not to give her the wrong impression that he was a slacker.

"Oh, I see," she said eagerly. She was carrying 2 heavy books in her arms. She let out a groan. "Man, I have like, 2 chemistry periods after lunch." She complained. "This is why I hate school."

Duke grinned and patted her on the back. "Don't worry, Seren," he said. "We all have days like that. You can do it," he encouraged her kindly.

"Thanks," she said brightly. "So... what are you doing this lunch period?" she asked.

"Eat." He replied.

"Aside from eating."

"I don't know... why?"

"I was hoping you can accompany me to the library... you know, to do that assignment Ms. Itchimura gave us this morning." She said.

"Oh. Sure," he said quickly.

"Great," she said. "Oh, there they are! Come on!" she said, pulling him to Yugi's table.

But his mind was hopelessly looking forward to researching the assignment later at the library... with Serenity... possibly alone...

* * *

**IN AN EMPTY CLASSROOM...**

"WHAT!!!"

"I just told you, Mr. Kaiba. You're going to be working with Mr. Joseph Wheeler on a project."

"Bullshit." He swore under his breath. Him, ever-famous CEO, paired up with a pathetic loser mutt? Where was the justice in that???

"Pardon, Mr. Kaiba? Did I just hear you swear?"

"No." he lied. He forgot that he was in school, and he usually swore especially when he was in a big dilemma. "Whatever." He said under his breath. The teacher raised her eyebrows at him and said, "Okay, that's all Mr. Kaiba. And if you're really the genius that everyone says you are, you will arrange a meeting with Mr. Wheeler as soon as possible." She said coolly.

Man, Kaiba hated teachers like that. Especially the ones who were demanding because he wasn't used to being pushed around.

But he would do anything just to pass school so that he can work immediately. School was just another obstacle in the way to good business. So he had to control his temper, or he would be kicked out.

'I should really buy this damn school.' He thought angrily. Without another word, he walked out of the room, carrying his laptop with him.

He hated Joey Wheeler, and everything about him. He was certain that Joey hated him too, which made them even. Joseph Wheeler was a dog menace to society. That blond dog shouldn't be strutting about the school, thinking that he was a really strong duelist, qualifying for the Duelist Kingdom before. Kaiba fumed at the very memory. Joey Wheeler shouldn't even have made it into the castle in the first place!

By the time he swung open the front door and sat on the front steps of the school, he was in a raging bad mood. 'Fucking Wheeler... He had to complicate things up... and existing in this school, getting in the way of my education... damn him!' Kaiba thought, his nerves heating up and in his fury, he kicked a small pebble he spotted on the stairs. He opened up his laptop and began working and typing up the latest report for Kaiba Corp.

"But Yug, come on! He's my partner in this stupid project, for goodness' sake! Can anyone ask for a better coincidence?" a voice rang out that immediately irritated Kaiba. As expected, it was Joey Wheeler, talking to his friend Yugi Mutou.

Kaiba knew immediately that Joey had been talking about the project. So seeing that it was his business too, he found a reason to butt in.

He walked up to them and said, "So if you find it so irritating that I'm your partner, Wheeler, well you got no choice. I tried changing her mind, but she refused." He said cruelly.

"Kaiba! You heard what I said?!" Joey glared.

"Anyone could hear you, mutt. Don't act stupid. Oh, wait... you are supposed to act stupidly because if I remember right, dogs have no brains. That includes you, mutt." Kaiba glared back.

Joey's face turned beet red and Yugi told him to calm down. Kaiba was lighting up with pleasure. It felt so good to annoy the mutt.

"Well, see you around, mutt, Yugi." He announced and walked away.

"Argh! Yugi, that creep is driving me crazy!" Joey shouted once Kaiba was out of earshot. "He totally drives me nuts!"

"Don't worry, Joey, he's always like that. By the way, where are the others?" Yugi asked, changing the subject.

"I have no idea. I haven't seen them all morning." Joey remarked. Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of their break. And still, the others were nowhere to be found.

* * *

**IN ONE OF DOMINO'S STORAGE PLACES...**

"Tristan, what did you drag me here for?" Tea whispered. She pinched her nose, trying to avoid the smell from coming up her nose.

"Ssh... quiet, Tea! I brought you here so that we can spy on Serenity and Duke. You know that I don't want to see Serenity hurt." Tristan hissed.

"But what's the point of hanging around here? It stinks!" Tea complained, pinching her nose even more.

"I know, but I care a lot for Serenity. Joey told me to take care of her if he wasn't there, so that's what I'm doing." Tristan protested, squinting through a small peephole to see if anyone was coming.

"Okay, whatever." Tea sighed. She knew that Tristan was hopelessly falling for Serenity, and was too overprotective of Serenity. She could have sworn that he was Serenity's brother if not for the fact that Joey was Serenity's brother.

"Great. Here they come!" Tristan said, and watched as their two friends came into view.

They were talking like they were really close friends, and Tristan was jealous. He wanted to be close to Serenity, but just couldn't find the courage to ask her to walk with him. 'Someday I'll ask her,' Tristan swore to himself.

He could hear a few snatches of their conversation, like "Thanks for coming with me," and "I can't wait for lunch,"

He got more desperate. He couldn't help having a crush on Serenity. After all, she was the prettiest girl that he had ever seen.

"Are you done? Can we come out now?" Tea hissed.

Whoops. He had almost forgotten that Tea was there. "Yeah. Wait for a sec, they're going the opposite direction now."

"Good. It's almost bell, anyways." Tea remarked.

Tristan sighed. "Okay, let's come out now." He said, and opened the door.

"At last," Tea breathed in the fresh air. "Tristan, don't do that again. That was totally disgusting."

Tristan made a mental note not to ask Tea to come with him anymore on these kinds of events, but who could he come with if not for her? He couldn't ask Joey because he was Serenity's brother, and he couldn't ask Yugi because he was too busy... so he had no choice. "Okay, let's just pick a better place next time," Tristan said, and shrugged.

Tea rolled her eyes. The bell rang. "Ok, catch you later." She told Tristan and they went in opposite directions.

* * *

A/N: So what do you think? Hope you like it... please review ok? Thanks so much!


	5. Chapter V

Chapter 5-The Question

A/N: Yay! 42 reviews!!! (Shouts with joy!) Yay... thanks guys your reviews cheered me up!!!! :)

Disclaimers: Don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

ANSWERS TO REVIEWS... 

Cecilia DevilAngel: I don't think it's gonna end well... hehe! It's gonna be hell for both of them to work with each other...

Joey: Yeah! Then why did you make us partners?

cheerful angel57: 'Cause I want to... Hahaha! Joke... anyways hope you enjoy the next chapters!

marikandcloe: Yeah Seto does need to be nicer to her... but that's when he's gonna fall in love with her... That's ok, thanks for the comment! Really appreciated it :)

Freak09: Well sorry for making you wait long but yeah, sooner or later Kaiba can't deny the fact that he DOES remember her... sorry for the long waits, ok?

RiterAnonymous: Yep, it's SetoXSerenity. Haha! I don't like Tristan either...

Sorceress Vanessa: That's okay. Glad you enjoyed the story so far... :) thanks! Good luck on your fics too!

Mistress Luna: New name again! Hehe... Yep I read your fic... :) It's great by the way! Update soon! :)

Cute Peridot 816: Hey there! Thanks a lot for the review!! :) Yep, his real name is Joseph Wheeler, Joey for short. But for Kaiba, it will always be "dog" or "mutt" or "loser." Haha!

Everyone: Thanks for reviewing the fic! Glad you guys enjoyed it :) By the way, sorry for making you wait! I've got school and it's driving me nuts! But I'll really try to update soon... Good luck on all your fics! See ya! :)

* * *

LUNCH... 

Duke Devlin was really excited. This was it! He was going with Serenity to the library. At last, he could spend some quality time with her. And maybe he could also ask her out on a date. He couldn't wait!!!

"Duke!" Serenity called, and he was ready to meet her with a ready smile.

She smiled back. He loved that sweet, sentimental smile and he asked himself how a woman could be that beautiful. Serenity was obviously gifted with lots of beauty.

'Snap out of it, dude, you're making her really uncomfortable.' Duke told himself, snapping back into reality. "Um, ok. Ready?"

"Yeah. Come on," she said, and motioned for him to follow her.

They arrived at the 3rd floor of Domino High School and there was not a sound to be heard. The library was quiet, with only a few people in it. Duke usually stereotyped them as nerds and geeks, since they had nothing to do but read. They didn't seem to have any social life. But this time, he felt that it was bad to tell Serenity about this. She was too innocent and sweet. Besides, she knew a few of the people in the library. He didn't want to stereotype her as a nerd either.

"Hi, Mrs. Kelly." She greeted the librarian, whom she gave a sweet smile. Everyone in there seemed to like her, because Mrs. Kelly, who Duke knew had a really bad temper, greeted Serenity in a polite manner. "Hello, Serenity. How can I help you today?" Mrs. Kelly asked. She gave Duke a peculiar stare.

"And who might this young man be?" she asked. Duke looked away from the old woman. He was afraid that she would remember him as the guy who once brought some soda drinks into the library.

"This is Duke Devlin. He's a really good friend of mine," Serenity answered cheerfully.

Mrs. Kelly peered at Duke behind her small glasses. "Okay. He must be a nice boy, if he is your friend." She finally concluded. Serenity gave one last smile and walked away, leading Duke away.

Duke heaved a sigh of relief. He was glad that the old woman had a lot of trust in Serenity or else she would have recognized him. He didn't want to look bad in front of Serenity.

"Here we go." She said, leading him into a narrow corridor of the library. It was full of uninteresting, thick books. Duke wasn't the least bit interested in them but he still followed her.

She picked up a big book from the aisle and led him to a table. He leaned over to see what book she got, and found out that it was just as uninteresting as the other books in the library.

Duke just didn't understand bookworms. There was no sense in reading books. You could see almost every single popular book being made into a movie. So what was the use of reading a book when you had other sources? Duke never understood why people should read books.

Serenity, on the other hand, seemed pretty interested in looking at the contents of the dusty volume. "See, Duke. All the information we need is here." She said excitedly.

Duke glanced over for a moment, expecting to find something really boring. Their assignment was to research on beautiful, historical spots in the world. Serenity was pointing at the black and white picture of a hidden valley. Duke now understood why she had starry-looking eyes. Just looking at the picture made you mesmerized enough to imagine it.

"Yeah. It is beautiful. Spectacular..." he commented.

Maybe this time he would realize the relevance of books.

* * *

**DOMINO HIGH SCHOOL. IN ONE OF ITS CLASSROOMS...**

"I assigned you your partners yesterday. So I want you to start working on this project together. I hope that you two will develop a good sense of cooperation and partnership to complete this project."

"Whatever. I'm never going to develop that while working with the mutt." Kaiba muttered under his breath. He was still fuming about the fact that Joey Wheeler was his partner. This project was going to be a living hell.

"Hey, Kaiba, hear that? PARTNERSHIP." Joey hissed in his ear. This made Kaiba boiling mad. "Shut up, mutt. Dogs aren't supposed to talk." Kaiba sneered back, making sure that the teacher didn't hear him.

Joey's temper hit the boiling point, and he knew he had to wait until after class to finally explode at Kaiba.

"So. What's this project about?" Kaiba inquired, ignoring Joey's demon stares.

"Mr. Kaiba, this project involves dissecting frogs." The whole class groaned. Kaiba's patience was really wearing out. Dissecting frogs???? He had dissected a frog when he was fourth grade. This was high school, for goodness' sake. Dissecting frogs was so OLD-FASHIONED.

The class was already bursting with discussion. While Kaiba was fuming to the boiling point... First, he had to team up with Joey Wheeler, now he had to dissect frogs?? How much more disastrous could this project be?

* * *

**DOMINO HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY...**

'Man... I feel like I'm totally falling for her.' Duke thought. 'Should I ask her the question? Or should I keep it to myself? Serenity is like the most perfect person I've ever met. I would be glad to be with her. I guess I should ask...' he thought, debating with himself, barely listening to what Serenity was saying to him.

"Hey, wait Serenity... I want to ask you an important question..." Duke finally blurted, avoiding the gaze of the pretty teenager.

"Yeah, what?" she replied, closing the book.

"Um... I don't know if I should ask this but..." He trailed off, unable to continue.

'_What's the matter with you, you idiot??? Get those words out!!"_ An annoyed voice sprang in his head.

"Serenity... can I... can I court you?" he stammered, turning a deep shade of magenta. _'Why did I say that??? Why did I listen to that stupid voice in my head??? No, anything but rejection!!!' _Duke thought, unable to meet her eyes.

Serenity meanwhile, was speechless. She didn't know what to say. She felt like she was paralyzed on the spot. _'Why did he ask that from me? He barely even knows me. I'm like, just a new acquaintance.' _She thought.

"Um... I..." she stammered. She had no clue of what to respond to this question...

* * *

A/N: Another cliffie! I don't know why I love leaving cliff-hangers... haha! Please review, by the way! And you can also guess what will happen next... :) k see ya! 


	6. Chapter VI

**Chapter 6**

* * *

**Disclaimers: **I do not own Yu-gi-Oh.

**A/N:** Well, this is the sixth chapter!!! Back again after all the horrendous schoolwork… glad I was able to finish them on time… :) whew!! Though I don't think I can update so fast because I need to study… gonna pull up my grades! Sigh… ok here are the answers to reviews, before I proceed with the sixth chapter…

**P.S.:** Eeyikes!! You guys are right… I think this really is turning into a d/s fic!!! **NO!!!!!!!!** Can't let that happen!!! But just to let you know, those parts are only to make the storyline complicated… after all, if there are no obstacles, the story would be boring with a capital B, right? :)

**P.S.2:** One more thing, I haven't been really reading fics for a while, so if you guys want me to check out your fics, just tell me through a review. And any comments, suggestions, or violent reactions also accepted. :) Thanks a lot!! And thanks for reviewing my fic!!!

_**ANSWERS TO REVIEWS:**_

**Return of VeryShortMidget**: well… you'll just see…

**Black Lightniing**: that's ok :)

Well, yeah, I think it's really looking like D/S but there's gonna be s/s in the next chapters… and probably in this one too… kinda… and this IS an s/s fic.

Nope, duke's not gonna turn into a pervert!! Whoah, if that happens… Joey's gonna fry him to smithereens… (Shudders…) I'd hate to be in Duke's position if that happened… but it won't, don't worry. Really, it's popular? I didn't know that… hehe!

Yep!! I'm such an evil authoress… I'm planning lots of trouble for Kaiba and Joey… (Evil laugh) Hey wait, I'm supposed to be an angel! Well, guess I could put the halo off and grow the horns on the head and a tail… joke! Yup, teachers are evil!!! They give too much homework… geez! Ok, thanks for your review! :)

**Sorceress Vanessa**: um… you'll see!!! :) glad you enjoyed it :) good luck on your fics too!

**Mistress Luna**: hehehe - yup, here's the update!!

**Marikandcloe**: hehe :) yup, this is a s/s fic… definitely gonna have s/s… I hate setoxtea too!! Very BAD couple!! TristanxSerenity and DukexSerenity too. SetoXSerenity rules!!! Hehe :) I thought you were gonna stop reading the fic!! Whew, glad that was just a joke :) thanks for the review!

**RoseGoddess874**: Thanks!! Yup, I'll read your fics :) Thanks for the review!!

**KatrinaKaiba**: Maybe… Duke's got a huge crush on Serenity… but that's too fast, he can't marry her yet!! Haha… maybe sometime in the future?!! Nah… not a fan of DukeXSerenity… k thanks for the review!!

**Everyone**: Thanks for the reviews, and thanks for reading the fic!!!

* * *

"Um… I…" Serenity stuttered, unable to respond. She was doing a lot of quick thinking. _'He doesn't know me that well yet, and he's going to ask me that question? I admit, I'm really flattered, but there's a saying that flattery will get you nowhere… plus, I think we need to be really close friends first… guess I should reject the offer for the moment…'_ she thought.

"So… what's your answer, Serenity? Don't worry, I won't be mad." Duke said. He could have kicked himself for asking that stupid question. He could see her eyes flashing in embarrassment. _'Idiot!!! What made you say it??'_ he thought to himself. The Idiot Of the Year award should go to him.

Meanwhile, Seto Kaiba walked into the library. _'Damn fucking project!! Dissecting frogs… talk about lame!!! And who even dissects frogs anymore?? Much less, with a PARTNER?? This is really going too far…' _

'_Wait… that's the Devlin kid over there, with the mutt's sister… Don't tell me they're also dissecting frogs…' _

He walked discreetly up to them, hearing snatches of conversation like, "I don't know what to say, Duke… that was really sudden… but I guess I have to say-"

It was Wheeler who said that, and she trailed off at the sight of Kaiba. He rolled his eyes. "Wheeler… Devlin… nice to see you at the library." He said, unable to control the sarcasm entering his voice.

"Kaiba," Duke said icily, eyeing the tall, blue-eyed CEO of Kaiba Corp. They both wore similar glares. After all, they were both rivals in business.

Serenity was glaring at Kaiba with all the anger she kept inside. Finally she couldn't take it anymore. "Excuse me, Duke, but I really have to go." She said hurriedly, gathering her belongings.

"But-"

"Sorry, but I need to talk to Kaiba for a sec."

'_Oho, Wheeler's going to talk to me? This better be good.' _Kaiba couldn't help smirking. She was marching up to him, with the utmost anger written on her attractive face-_'It's like she's got beware written all over her face. Interesting to see a woman with this kind of appearance. Definitely intimidating, not to mention…' _

Her long auburn locks were strewn all over her face, and her eyes were swarming with deep felt anger. "Kaiba, **we need to talk.**"She said fiercely, and with a change in his expression, he stared at her with cold blue eyes, waiting for her to continue.

"**You, Seto Kaiba, are the biggest jerk I have ever known!" **She was already beginning to lose her nerve. Kaiba just had the greatest ability to piss her off.

"Oh, am I?" Kaiba said, looking impressed. "Nice try, Wheeler, but not enough to intimidate me. Tell me, what else would you say about me? Let's see…" Kaiba said mockingly, counting off on his fingers. "There's cynical, cruel, harsh…"

"**Shut the hell up!" **Serenity shouted, too pissed off to even care. She didn't even notice all the people staring at her. **"Just because you have the ability to piss me off doesn't mean that you should!" **

"Like whatever." Kaiba said coolly. "Besides, Wheeler, I haven't done anything that would make you hate me and call me a jerk." He reasoned out. He didn't know, but it was in his nature to be sarcastic to anyone but Mokuba.

"CAN'T YOU READ THE SIGN??" came another voice. It was the librarian. She was pointing at the sign, SILENCE. "OUT!!! YOU TWO ARE SUSPENDED FROM THE LIBRARY FOR A WEEK!"

"But, Mrs. Kelly-"

"You too, Serenity Wheeler! You should remember your responsibility! You should show respect to other people in the library! You can only come back after a week! I'll be watching you two…" warned the librarian.

Serenity closed her eyes, hoping she was dreaming, then she opened them. "Okay. I'm really sorry, Mrs. Kelly. I just couldn't help myself." She said bitterly, shooting a glare in Kaiba's direction. Picking up her belongings, she left the library.

"You too, Mr. Kaiba!"

Kaiba raised his eyebrows as if this meant nothing to him, and left just as briskly as Serenity had done. _'Now how the hell would I be able to research on those stupid frogs?? Suspended for a week…' _This put him in a further bad mood, and what happens next would just get worse.

* * *

**In the hallway…**

There were a lot of whispers in the hall as Serenity passed. _'Great, total humiliation. Just what I need. Stupid, stupid, stupid!! Why on earth did I do that?' _she could almost kick herself at the memory. She had just yelled at her so-called former best friend, and she left the library in disgrace. Plus, she had to avoid Duke for some time until she could think of a suitable answer to his question. This day could just keep getting worse.

She was right, however. The day just kept getting worse, and it started when she met up with her friends.

"Hey, Serenity! Over here!" yelled Tristan.

She adjusted her backpack and strode miserably to where Tristan and her friends were standing.

Many people were gathered around something. Like there was a commotion or something.

"What's going on?" she asked when she approached her friends.

No one replied to her, because they were all busy looking at the bulletin board, which was what the commotion was all about. But she could hear all the murmurs of several students near the board.

"It says that the whole Domino High School is going to have a winter ball! Cool!" was one of the murmurs in front.

'_A winter ball?' _Serenity thought, thinking quickly. Yes, it was nearly Christmas. It was a yearly tradition to have a Christmas dance. But what was so special about this dance?

Tea came out of the crowd. She had been one of the people near the bulletin board. "Hey Serenity…" she called, waving her hand out to her friend.

"Hey, Tea. What's with the bulletin board?" she asked.

"Something about the winter ball. The so-called Winter King and Queen are going to win a prize." She said, sounding uninterested. "But never mind that now. I think I heard a rumor about you-but I'm not sure if it's true. Did you really yell at Kaiba in the library a while ago?" Tea asked.

Serenity turned a bright shade of carnation pink. "Um," she said. "Yeah, that's true. But it's a long story." She said in a small voice.

"Come on. Why won't you tell me? I can help." Tea said.

Serenity could have choked of laughter. She knew that deep inside, Tea just wanted to know what was happening in her life. And even if she had made a polite offer, Serenity knew that Tea was just finding another opportunity to rat on Kaiba again.

"No thanks. Some other time." Serenity said politely. "I don't want to talk about it right now."

"Okay." Tea said. She looked disappointed that Serenity didn't want to tell her what had happened. _'I think I should just find out myself.' _She thought to herself.

'_Calling in Inspector Tea Gardner,' _she thought amusedly.

* * *

A/N: So that's all for chapter 6. Finished it, FINALLY!!! Hopefully I can get along to writing chapter 7 soon. Grrr, I think I boiled over when I wrote that last line, the one with 'calling in Inspector Tea Gardner.' AS IF SHE EVEN IS AN INSPECTOR!! She's just meddling in business that isn't hers. Looks like that will lead Serenity into more trouble. Anyways, S/S moments will come really soon now. Thanks for waiting… And any suggestions, comments or violent reactions, please send them in through a review. Thanks!!! 


	7. Chapter VII

**Chapter 7**

* * *

**Disclaimers: **I don't own Yu-gi-Oh. 

**A/N: **Hey! Sorry for the late update. Exams… ugh… By the way, there are some surprises in store in this chapter! Someone acts strangely… Anyways, here's the update!

**Replies:**

**VeryShortMidget:** Hey! Yup, cliffies… but sometimes I'm not fond of cliffies… :) hehe!

**Luna Princess of the Shadows:** Sure! Romance cooking up! Hehehe! I'm a big fan of Seto and Serenity too! K, see ya:) please review this chap!

**Freak09: **Hehe! Anger moments, huh:) here's the update:) please review! Thankees!

**Cecilia DevilAngel: **That's okay! Better late than never, right:) Me too, I've been offline for like… months! Glad I was able to update today… hehe… :)

**RiterAnonymous:** Yup! S/S forever:)

**KatrinaKaiba: **Thanks! Please read and review this chapter too:)

**Starwolf4: **Hey, thanks for the review! Wow that's late… 1:00? I can't even stay up until 12! Hehe:)

**Cute Peridot 816: **Eii! How's the PT's going? So hard! You got past math a while ago? Really hard… hehe! Anyways, yeah, new personalities! Even this chapter… hehe! God bless on the PT's!

**ChaosPanicDisorder-myjobisdone: **Hey cool pen name:) Really? Thanks! Please review this chap… thanks!

* * *

**A week later…**

"So, what are you going to wear to the party?" Tea asked, injecting it in her conversation with Serenity.

"What?" Serenity blurted, "What party?"

"The ball. You know, the winter ball."

"Um, I don't even know if I'm going."

"Oh come on, whom are you going with?"

"No one. Why?"

Tea sighed. "Oh come on, Serenity, don't tell me that you forgot all about your big crush on Seto Kaiba."

"He's **NOT** my crush! Will you please stop that? He's just my former friend. I don't know how he could turn out like that. I didn't even believe it myself. But I guess I have to accept it. After all…" Serenity trailed off and sighed.

"Ok." Tea said. She sort of felt sorry for Serenity-losing a very special friend was torture. But there was just something that Serenity didn't want to tell her. Especially why Serenity had yelled at Kaiba in the library, if that was true.

"Hey girls," called a voice as he entered the room. They were all at Yugi's house, and Duke was the one who entered.

"Hey Duke," Tea said.

"Hi," Serenity said in a small voice.

Tea glanced suspiciously at Serenity. She had seemed shy all of a sudden.

"So," Duke said, sitting down on the couch, getting the remote, "whom are you going with to the ball?"

Serenity grimaced. She was sick of all the talk about the winter ball. Who cares about who's going with whom?

"No one yet," Tea answered promptly. Serenity didn't answer.

"What about you, Serenity?" Duke asked.

"I don't know. No one, I guess. Besides, it's still a long time off." She said.

"Would you like to come with me?" Duke asked quietly.

She avoided his gaze. "Um," she said. _**'Come on Serenity, say yes! After all, what's there to lose?'** _whispered a voice in her head.

'_But… I don't like him that way! If I say **yes**, he's gonna think that I like him… and I can't let that happen! Then there'll be rumors all over the school…' _Serenity thought miserably.

"Um… I still have to think about it… I don't even know if I'm going yet…" she blurted.

"Okay…" Duke said, looking really disappointed. "Well… um, if you can go, just tell me, okay?" he managed a small smile before leaving the room.

He shut the door subtly and Tea shot her a strange look. "Girl, what's with you refusing Duke like that? He's just a friend, there's nothing to lose…"

"It's just that… I don't like him that way! I like a guy that I can share a special occasion with… you know…" Serenity sighed.

"I know what you mean… but sometimes you find the guy you want when you're much older."

Serenity sighed again. "Yeah, I know… I guess I just have to accept. I'll tell him right now." She said.

* * *

**Later that evening…**

Serenity locked herself in her room. _'What on earth am I doing? Am I just hiding out like a coward? Why can't I face Duke and tell him that I can't go with him to the ball?'_ She slumped against the wall, looking around her tidy room and furnishings.

She needed to return a book back to the library. She looked at her watch. _'Good it's not yet closed.' _She thought thankfully, and grabbed her knapsack. She slipped out into the cold night, the night breeze whipping her hair.

She reached the library just in time. There were still several students there, checking out books and researching. She caught sight of Seto Kaiba. _'What on earth is he doing here?' _Serenity thought furiously.

'**_Hold your temper, will you. Remember what happened the last time?' _**said the voice in her head.

'_Yeah, I know.'_ Serenity answered it sarcastically. Of course she remembered the catastrophe at the library last week. It had everyone talking and teasing her, especially those who didn't have the guts to stand up to Kaiba.

He caught her looking at him, and he looked away, without saying anything.

Serenity was surprised. He usually sent a smirk in her direction. He did not usually look away from her, since he took every chance he got to torture her mercilessly.

'_Perhaps he remembered…' _She thought reproachfully. She was hoping that he remembered that she was part of his past… Like he was always part of hers.

With these thoughts ringing in her head, she returned the book back to the librarian.

"It's glad to see you again, Serenity. But it shocks me to see you fly in a rage like that." Mrs. Kelly said quietly.

"Yeah, I'm really sorry, Mrs. Kelly. Really, I am." She apologized.

"It's no problem, Serenity. I know you wouldn't do anything like that again." Mrs. Kelly said, giving her a smile.

"Okay. Thanks." She said, and as she was leaving the line, she stole a look at Kaiba. He was already getting up, and leaving the library. He had returned the book he was reading and strode briskly to the door.

She thought that he was acting strangely. First of all, he didn't have that infernal laptop, and he was not wearing any sinister smirk on his face. He wasn't smiling either. He was looking serious and all, like a normal person. Kaiba was really a mystery.

As he walked past her, her heartbeat quickened. "Um, hi." She said shyly. She felt like kicking herself. _'Why did you have to say that? You could simply ignore him! And he's probably mad about last week, remember?' _

"Hi. Serenity." He said, acknowledging her like any normal person.

What was happening to this world? Kaiba was acting SO strangely. He didn't seem like his usual self. _'What, don't tell me he had a brain transplant, or maybe he was kidnapped by aliens from outer space!' _she thought, purely amazed.

"Listen, I just… I just want to apologize. That's all." He stammered, like he was unsure of what he was saying.

Serenity couldn't take it anymore, so she blurted it out. "Are you okay, Kaiba? You kind of… seem not like yourself." She murmured.

"I know I'm not." He shrugged. "Bye." He muttered and walked out the doorway.

Serenity couldn't remember walking out of the library, but the next thing she knew, she was home.

* * *

**In the school hallway, the next morning…**

"Hey! So are you going with Duke?" Tea asked Serenity.

"… Um… no. I really don't feel comfortable." She said.

"Geez, you're lucky you already got asked. I still have to find myself one. But if you don't like to go with Duke, why don't I find you a date?"

"Um… I don't know," Serenity murmured honestly.

"Trust me on this! The guy will be cute, I promise. You'll look so cute together!"

"Sure, I trust you, Tea. Um… okay." She said in an unsure voice.

"He-ey, Serenity, don't worry, you won't regret this. I promise. Okay?" Tea assured her.

"Um… okay. Thanks, Tea."

Serenity and Tea parted ways and went to their classrooms.

* * *

**Tea's classroom…**

Tea Gardner sat in class, knowing that this wouldn't be a dull class. She glanced at her teacher who was busy droning in front. When she was positive that he wasn't looking her way, she opened her bag and took out their yearbook.

'_No, not him… definitely NOT him… gosh, this was harder than I thought.'_ Tea thought, looking through the pages and shaking her head. She was determined to find Serenity the perfect date.

But she was unsuccessful. When the class ended, she was still stumped. But then, Katrina, who was part of her class, and one of the most-obsessed-about-Kaiba-girls on campus. She was so eager about something.

"Hey girls, look what I have!" she said excitedly as her friends gathered around her.

"What is it, Katrina?" asked one of her friends.

"I have a picture of my one true love!" she gushed, taking a small Polaroid out of her pocket to show her friends. "I was out at the library last night to research on that project we were working on, and it was a good thing I brought my camera! I was so shocked to see Seto there! Oh, you should have been there! He was sooo handsome, and he was reading a book back there. But I got his picture as he was leaving the library." She said. "He was talking to that really weird girl, that Serenity Wheeler, the one who shouted at him in the library last week." She informed them.

"Hey Katrina, can I see your picture?" Tea asked politely.

"Yeah! Sure." She smiled and told her friends more about Kaiba.

Tea was interested in the photograph. How could Serenity have been at the library last night?

She looked at the picture. The picture depicted Seto Kaiba talking to Serenity Wheeler. _'But how could that be? They positively screamed at each other that day.' _She thought logically.

But still, she had to admit, they looked great together. Suddenly Tea felt inspired to match Serenity up with him. Then she remembered: _'Oh no! They're obviously mad at each other. Why of all people, she choose to have a grudge on the guy who looked really great next to her?' _Tea thought disappointedly.

'_I guess I just have to get them to like each other, in that case. There's no one as nice looking enough as Kaiba to be matched up with her.' _Tea began to forget the fact that Serenity might be furious to know who her date was, and instead she focused on how to get them together.

* * *

**Kaiba Mansion, after school at Domino High…**

Kaiba came home in his expensive limousine, and he intentionally came home early so that he could ponder what was on his mind.

'_Why… why of all problems to plague my head… this has to be the largest?' _he thought, frowning, deep in thought.

Mokuba Kaiba was there to welcome him in the living room. "Hey, bro!" he called to his elder brother cheerfully. Kaiba paused his thoughts for a moment and smiled at his angelic brother.

"Mokuba, what are you doing here? You should be doing your assignments." Kaiba told his younger brother.

Mokuba smiled broadly. "I'm done. What have you been doing lately?"

"Just work… kills me. And schoolwork, of course." He thought guiltily of the dissecting frogs project with Joey Wheeler. He had not been talking with the mutt for days. He knew he had to be getting to work on that project.

"You need any help?"

"No thanks, Mokuba. I can do them by myself."

"Okay." Mokuba smiled one last time and went up to Seto. He was holding something in his hand, a photo album Seto kept personally in his bedside table. Seto smiled. Only Mokuba could get away with getting something personal of his. He got it from Mokuba. "Where did you get this?", pretending he did not know.

"Where else would I get it? In your room, of course." Mokuba grinned. Seto flipped through it, reproachfully recalling his past memories. He had never wanted his picture to be taken, but somehow, somebody had to force him into the class picture. Now he had the choice whether to appear in the picture or not.

"Ooh, who's this, Seto?" Mokuba said eagerly, pointing to a picture, showing him in his preschool days with a little girl, younger than him and could have passed for his little sister.

"That's…" he hesitated. "That's Serenity Wheeler."

"The sister of Joey Wheeler? Oh! So that's her!" Mokuba said. "She's pretty! How'd you meet her?"

"She's my… sort of friend in preschool." He said, wanting to skip the subject. He didn't want to answer anything about Serenity Wheeler, especially to his brother. He needed to change the subject quickly.

"Hey Mokuba, I'm going upstairs. I need to work on my… project." He lied and positively ran up the stairs.

'_I wonder if he's hiding anything from me?' _Mokuba thought dumbfoundedly, watching his brother, thinking that he was just trying to escape from Mokuba's questions.

* * *

**In the CEO's vast room…**

'_This is getting so strange. I'm suddenly thinking of something that I don't want to think about…' _Kaiba pondered, his head aching from all that thinking. He had been thinking of the same subject ever since yesterday. This was the only time in his whole life that he had thought so very hard about something. It figures, because when you're really smart, you don't need to think that much, unless you are taking a test that you're not mentally prepared for.

The subject was: Serenity Wheeler. _'Why do I even give a damn on what she's doing? I have no concern in her life… until yesterday. I don't know what brought me to say sorry to her! And I haven't even smirked once in her direction. What's happening to me?' _Kaiba slumped on his bed.

'_And I'm starting to dwell on the memories of my childhood with her. I remember everything so vividly now… she was a really special friend to me, and I didn't want to forget her. But somehow… I did. I distanced myself from everything…' _

He buried his face in his hands. Now he was really confused. _'Could I possibly be… in love with her? No, no, no! I'm not! She's the brother of that mutt!' _He thought heatedly. He determined not to think about her.

'**_Why are you stopping yourself from thinking about her? You know you want to. You're attracted to her. She's been your childhood friend. Face it, even if she's the sister of your mortal enemy, you can't help but think about her!' _**a voice in his head whispered viciously.

'_That's NOT true! All lies!' _he thought. But deep inside, he knew that the voice was right—He had been thinking about her, and he just couldn't stop. What was this complicated emotion? It felt strange to him. It was like he wanted to approach Serenity and tell her that he had changed, and he wanted to be her friend. But there was something holding him back—his attitude. His image at school was a cool, intelligent guy who seemed to have everything that everyone wanted in life. A rich, cynical, independent guy who didn't need anyone's help. How would that look if he did approach the mutt's sister? It was total ruin. And the mutt would fry him for life. Imagine—his mortal enemy seeing him talk to his sister? Not a very good scenario, he had to admit.

'_I just want to forget about her…' _he groaned.

'_**Talk to her! It won't do you any harm.' **_

'_No, it will. Everyone will get the news—Kaiba approaches his worst enemy's sister. How very appealing.' _Kaiba thought sarcastically.

'_**You are so stubborn. Trust me, it will do you good. It will keep you from the suspense in your heart.'**_

'_My HEART? What the hell are you talking about? This has got nothing to do with liking that girl!' _

'_**Then ask yourself, why are you thinking about her so much? Face it, you have a CRUSH.' **_

'_I DO NOT! SHUT THE HELL UP!' _

'_**Suit yourself. But it's your problem now.' **_

Kaiba furiously gritted his teeth. _'LEAVE ME ALONE!' _

And the voice was silent, leaving Kaiba alone to his thoughts once more.

* * *

A/N: So how was it? Kinda dramatic, for me… sorta! Any comments? Suggestions? Questions? Violent Reactions? Please review! Thank you so much. –cheerful angel57 :) 


	8. Chapter VIII

**Chapter 8**

* * *

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

* * *

Just another school day. The students of Domino High School were busy attending their classes, dozing, studying, cramming and the many normal things that students do.

However, one crowd stood apart from the rest. That was Yugi Mutou's group, consisting of Joey Wheeler, Tristan Taylor, Tea Gardner, Serenity Wheeler, Duke Devlin and of course Yugi himself. Now this group, at present, was segregated and divided into "subgroups". One of these was Serenity and Tea's group.

Now this is where our chapter starts… the conversation of these two teenagers.

"So, Serenity… anything new?" Tea asked.

"Nothing much. But I do have something to tell you." Serenity took a deep breath. "I saw Seto Kaiba yesterday at the library."

Tea almost blurted out that she knew that piece of information already, but stopped because if she mentioned that, Serenity would ask how she had known, and everything will come out about the plans to match Serenity up with Kaiba.

So all she had to do was act surprised. "Really? What happened?"

"Well, I thought about what he was doing there, by himself. And I don't know, I just began to… stare at him for no particular reason. Then he caught me looking at him, and he looked away. But you know what, the whole time, he didn't give me the usual sinister smirk. He was really serious. And when he got up to leave the library… I kind of acknowledged him, and he greeted me, too! I was so spaced out… Plus, he APOLOGIZED to me. Then I asked him if he was okay, 'cause he was behaving kind of strangely, then he shrugged, saying that he knew that he was not like his usual self. And before I knew it, I was out of the library."

Tea kept her reaction to herself. For one thing, she was ecstatic that they were not mad at each other anymore. But why would Seto Kaiba act so sweet and apologetic? It didn't make sense. _'Maybe… just maybe, he has feelings for Serenity!' _Tea thought, glad to come up with a brilliant deduction.

"Um, Tea, are you okay? You looked kind of spaced out too." Serenity commented, bringing her back to reality.

"Yeah! I'm alright." Tea exclaimed joyfully. _'Time to launch Operation Match-up Seto Kaiba and Serenity Wheeler.'_

* * *

**In Tea's classroom…**

Tea was busy as she took a look at the colored Xerox copy of Serenity and Kaiba's picture at the library. She had borrowed it from Katrina and Xeroxed it immediately.

Suddenly a voice behind her said, "Hey, Tea, I want to talk to you." She looked behind her and found Duke Devlin giving her a small smile. Tea hastily hid the copy of the Polaroid from his view and motioned for him to sit down.

"So, um, Duke, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I want to know if Serenity… said anything to you about the dance."

"Um, not really. What do you mean, if she was coming to the dance with you?"

"Yeah."

"Well… no." she replied, feeling sorry for him.

Duke sighed. "I might as well have known. I don't know how to get her to like me… I've tried every possible way, but I don't know what she feels about me."

"Why don't you ask her? Or tell her how you feel?" Tea suggested pointedly.

"…" Duke thought about it for a while. Finally he said, "Okay, I'll try that. Thanks, Tea." He stood up, prepared to leave.

"By the way," he added. "What were you looking at when I came here?"

"Nothing… really." Tea said quickly. He was the last person she wanted to tell about her plans to match Kaiba up with Serenity.

One of Duke's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't say anything. "Okay, thanks again, Tea. I guess I better get going now."

And when he left, Tea breathed a sigh of relief, glad that he wasn't able to discover any of her plans.

* * *

**Lunch.**

"Hey, Serenity… can I sit with you?" Duke breathed, panting from all the running he had been doing lately.

"Um, sure." She replied. They were both at the small garden behind Domino High, an optional spot where they could eat during their breaks if they didn't like the cafeteria.

She was a sight to behold, as usual, in Duke's opinion. Her long brown hair was kept neat in a tight ponytail, and he couldn't help staring deeply into her beautiful eyes.

"I just talked to Tea a while ago during break." He said.

"Really? What did she tell you?" Serenity asked curiously.

"Um… she told me you haven't answered my invitation to the dance yet." He said awkwardly.

She hesitated. "Um, yeah, I haven't yet." She blushed furiously.

"So… can you answer me now? It's okay if you say no, I won't bite your head off." Duke said, although he hoped inwardly that she would say yes. His feelings for her were quite strong, and he could as well admit that he was in love with her. He hoped that she felt the same about him. But she wasn't giving him any hints to what she truly felt.

"Hey, listen, I think I want to go to the restroom. I'll come back." She excused herself hurriedly.

"Sure. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Don't worry about me. I'll be back…"

* * *

Serenity ran to the restroom, wanting to hide out in her stall forever so that she didn't have to face Duke. She knew she still had to answer his question, and how could she tell him that she couldn't accept because Tea was arranging a blind date for her?

And to make things worse, she didn't like Duke in that way. She had been telling herself that for a long time. That was just it, she wasn't attracted to him. She truly didn't like him more than a friend.

She straightened up in her stall, feeling so uncomfortable. And there was still Kaiba to think about. She was secretly hoping that Tea would get him to go with her to the dance. But Tea probably knew that Serenity yelled at Kaiba in the library the other day.

But she had impulsively been dropping hints to Tea, like how she told her this morning about her encounter with Seto Kaiba, and how he acted so strangely around her.

'_What am I doing? I can't hide out in the restroom forever. I have to face Duke, sooner or later. It won't make it better if I don't face him now.' _She reasoned logically. She stepped out of the stall, and washed her hands in the faucet. And she turned back to the garden to face Duke.

* * *

'_There she is.' _Seto Kaiba thought as he made his way through the small garden. He chose one wooden table a bit far from Duke and Serenity's table.

He caught sight of Serenity as she walked casually back to her table, striking up a conversation with Duke Devlin.

'_I wonder why she's always hanging out with that Devlin guy. Why not her other friends, like Gardner or with her brother? Don't tell me Devlin and Serenity are a couple.' _A rush of jealousy traveled through his body. This was such a new feeling to him. He had indeed felt jealousy before, but that was with other people, and they were not girls.

But this was different. _'Could I possibly be jealous of that Devlin because Serenity Wheeler is talking to him?' _He asked himself quietly, confused as ever.

Then Serenity glanced at him and met his eyes for one second. He could feel the electricity between them. It was a wonderful sensation, and his pulse raced up. _'Stop it! You might get a heart attack just staring at her, you know!' _

And it was then that he realized it. He had a huge crush on Serenity Wheeler, but was scared to admit it.

* * *

A/N: How was that? That's it for this chapter… Chapter 9 coming up ASAP. Okay, bye! Please review. Thanks! 


	9. Chapter IX

**Chapter 9**

* * *

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

A/N: Hope you won't be mad at me for the LONG wait. Here's chapter 9…

* * *

**Kaiba Mansion, Saturday, 6:00 A.M.**

Seto Kaiba was wide awake, staring at the screen of his laptop. He just couldn't stop staring. It was a picture of him and Serenity in the library, when they talked to each other… and it was posted up on his local website.

He knew that he wasn't the one who made that website, but he knew, however, that it was one of his so-called fans. Talk about paparazzi.

He drummed his fingers on the table. _'How on earth did that picture get on this website? ARGH! Why can't people stop meddling in my life? When I get to that Yuki Kanegeshi, she will be MORE THAN DEAD.'_

He was too angry to be consoled, even by Mokuba. That was why, when the doorbell rang, the CEO swore loudly.

Then he heard some footsteps climbing up the staircase. _'Finally.' _Kaiba thought.

Another teenager opened the door as Kaiba said, "Come in, Wheeler."

* * *

**Gardner Residence, 7:00 A.M.**

Tea checked out her email to find out that the first part of the plan had worked—there was one message from Katrina in her inbox.

She immediately clicked the hyperlink and read what Katrina had to say.

"_Hey, Tea,_

_You know the favor you asked me for? The one you asked me in class yesterday… about posting that picture up in our fan website of Seto… I gave the picture to Yuri Kanegeshi. She's the manager of the site, and I asked her to scan and post it up. Although, Tea, I don't know why you asked me to do this… though it's simple enough. I hope that whatever you're doing won't harm Kaiba. That's all. _

_-Katrina"_

Tea read the short email with satisfaction. Now to proceed to the next part of her plan.

* * *

**Kaiba Mansion.**

"Come on, mutt, we're going to work on that damn project. You will search on the Internet using my laptop about dissecting frogs, and I will dissect the frog for the meantime." Kaiba said, already hard at work.

"Yeah, alright, Mr. Moneybags," Joey answered loftily, and headed to Kaiba's large desk.

"Hey, Moneybags, you got your own website?" Joey asked, opening up the mini-computer and looking at the website address.

"Skip that." Kaiba said hastily. "Just go to the website for frog dissecting."

"Fine." Joey said dismissively and without another word, the pair was hard at work.

When they were finished, they admired (I mean, examined) their work. Joey had summed up a report about their frog dissection. The frog that Kaiba dissected was lying flat on its back, certain parts of it cut open and pinned back. Kaiba had pasted it on an illustration board, labeling the various parts of the frog.

"Phew. That's done. Will you be the one to hand it in?" Joey asked gruffly.

"Yes. Now go, mutt, I don't want you ruining my reputation."

"You call frog dissection ruining your reputation?"

"No, I call YOU ruining my reputation. If we're seen together, look who's going to be talking about us behind our backs. So GET OUT." Kaiba ordered his mortal enemy firmly.

And without another word Joey left, and the phone rang.

Kaiba waited for two rings until he answered it. "Kaiba Residence."

"Hey, Kaiba, how are you doing?" a female voice answered.

He gritted his teeth. That Gardner sure had nerve for calling his mansion while she and her friends were his enemies. "What do you want, Gardner?"

"Just a little blackmail, I'm afraid. You saw that picture of you and Serenity Wheeler on the internet?"

"Yes. Don't tell me you posted that, Gardner, because I'm going to kill you myself. Literally."

"No, I wasn't the one who posted that. Although I do have a deal for you. We'll stop posting that picture on the Internet if you agree to go on a blind date." Tea said deviously.

"And what if I don't agree?"

"We'll be posting lots more pictures of you and some other girl, and you'll be getting lots of publicity and rumors. You don't want that do you?"

"No. But I'm wondering why, all of a sudden, you and your angelic friends are starting blackmail. It's not your type." Kaiba said.

"I know. But I promised a friend of mine that I would arrange a blind date for her."

"And why of all people are you asking me to be her so called date?"

"Because both of you look good together. I'm sure of that," Tea answered firmly. It was almost going to work.

Tea waited for his answer. "Fine. You win. But after this you all leave me alone." He answered, and slammed down the phone.

* * *

"Serenity! It worked! I found you a blind date!"

"_Really?" _

"Yeah! You'll see. You two will look so _cute _together! I've got to bring my camera, I can't miss it!"

"_Oh. Um, okay. Thanks. By the way, when will I meet him?"_

"At the dance, of course. But we have to get you a dress, quick! Meet me at the Domino Mall. Okay?"

"_Um, yeah, okay. See you there." _The phone clicked.

* * *

**Domino Mall.**

"This one looks perfect!"

"You've got to be kidding me."

"No, I'm serious! It looks really good on you."

Serenity smiled. She looked once more at her reflection, admiring the way the dress hung from her body. "Okay," she breathed slowly. "I'll get it."

* * *

A/N: Ok, this is way short but sorry for all the waiting. I'll be right back with the next chapter, as soon as I can make it online. 


	10. Chapter X

**Chapter 10**

* * *

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh…

A/N: Now this is what really sucks—I can't find enough time to update my stories! It would have been easier if I had a laptop of my own (like Kaiba does) and I could go typing all day until I run out of ideas. But it happens that whenever I have free time to use the comp, everyone in my house is occupying it! So I'm really, really, really sorry if updates aren't that often, plus I have school. GRRR… ok, I better learn to be more patient. So… here's Chapter 10.

But before that… REPLIES!

**Freak09: **Wow! Really? Thanks:) Although I owe up that this chapter's not my very best, but still I tried my best to make it as interesting as possible.

**RiterAnonymous: **That's okay, at least you found my story again, hehehe:) hope you enjoy this one…

**xXRoseGoddess874Xx: **Hey, thanks for reviewing:) sorry I'm kind of late with all your stories and poems, I've been really busy! But I'll review them all in time, promise. :)

**lilxangelxsweetz: **lol! You get the answer here… Thanks for the review:)

**ya1ya: **Here's the update:) thanks for the review

* * *

Tea checked her watch. Serenity was supposed to meet her at the parlor right now, and she still wasn't here yet. What was taking her?

"Can I help you, miss?" asked the girl behind the counter, putting down her scheduling notebook.

"Um, no, sorry. I'm just waiting for my friend." Tea answered.

"Oh, I see. Do you want me to check if she's here right now?"

"No thanks." Tea replied, adjusting the straps of her backpack. Where the heck was Serenity?

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the Wheeler's…**

Serenity woke up late that day, since she had punished her alarm clock earlier that morning for waking her up. Yawning, she flipped her hair back.

There was something she just wasn't remembering now… She struggled to remember what it was, but came to no luck. Practically flinging herself into the shower, she washed her face. A douse of warm water always woke her up in the morning. Opening her eyes clearly, she focused her memory to remember the events of yesterday.

She was shopping with Tea yesterday afternoon… then she remembered eating dinner with Joey… then she remembered talking to Tea on the phone afterwards… What was that she said? … "Meet me tomorrow at 7:00, okay? I want you to meet your date." But why was she meeting a date? Was there something planned?

Then the whole, nervous feeling came back to her again in crashing torrents. '_The dance is TONIGHT! And I'm going to meet my date! I just HOPE Tea picks out someone that I know I'll like…' _she thought frantically, her thoughts racing. How could she have forgotten? She was thinking about it all night, even until the moment she slept.

There was something else she was forgetting… another thing Tea had said…

Then a realization hit her. She was supposed to meet Tea at the parlor! _'I hate it when mornings start like this!' _She thought, angry at herself for being so absent-minded. After dressing quickly, she ran to the parlor, ignoring the red blinking of the answering machine.

* * *

"Where have you been?" Tea asked when Serenity reached the parlor breathlessly.

"Was… at… home… I overslept. Sorry…" Serenity gasped, briefly taking a few deep breaths.

"That's okay, come on, they're waiting for us," Tea said, gesturing at the two ladies waiting to service them.

* * *

After the two friends finished their appointment at the parlor, they settled for taking a break over some ice cream.

"So, don't forget—meet me at 7 once you get in. Okay?"

"Yeah, it won't happen again." Serenity smiled confidently.

* * *

Upon arriving at the dance, Tea Gardner scanned the small crowd who came early for the winter ball. _'The decorations are not bad, the food looks fine… although I only hope that Kaiba and Serenity will work this out!' _she couldn't help thinking.

She was supposed to meet Serenity at 7:00 to introduce her to her blind date. Tea looked at her watch. It was 6:30. 30 minutes to spare, and she still couldn't find anyone to talk to.

"Hey, Tea," greeted another teenager.

"Yugi! What are you doing here so early?"

"I might want to ask you that too, but I'll tell you why I'm here. I'm a volunteer to help with the decorations. Now," he said, "what are you doing here so early?"

"Nothing much," She said a bit defensively, and Yugi sensed her tone.

"You're not planning something, are you, Tea?"

"No, I'm not." She lied.

"Oh come on, when you're acting defensive, I know you have something in mind… I won't tell… promise."

Tea hesitated before answering, "Okay, fine. You got me. Now, you better not find me regretting that I told you… so yeah, I'm matching Serenity up on a blind date."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I just hope they both come early."

"Okay, Tea, wish you luck. I have to finish setting up the tables now. Bye!"

Tea waved goodbye to Yugi, and once again checked her watch.

* * *

Before getting down from Joey's car, Serenity checked herself one more time. Her hair, which she had someone at the parlor perm for her, was hanging neatly down her shoulders. The light makeup she put on before the dance was still in place. Her dress, a red halter which Tea had said matched her perfectly, hung about her body frame. And the final touch were her new sandals.

'_Now all I need to do is find Tea. Where is she?' _she asked herself.

After scanning the crowd, she spotted Tea in one corner and headed over to her. "Serenity! There you are… Well, Serenity, let me introduce you to your blind date…" Tea pulled the arm of the person next to her, whom Serenity hadn't noticed when she headed towards Tea. Now she fastened her eyes to the man beside her friend. He was tall… and as her eyes worked upward, she recognized the familiar features and she nearly vomited.

"**_K-Kaiba?" _**she exclaimed. "What are you doing here! Tea, he's not my date, is he? Did you make a mistake?" she spluttered, barely getting the words out of her mouth.

"Yeah, he is your date, and now, Seto, you have Serenity all to yourself. You two have fun, okay?" Tea said a mighty bit too cheerfully and left the two of them alone.

Now Serenity was facing Kaiba with the red imprints on her cheeks, as we all identify as blushing. _'Ohmigosh, what am I going to do?' _She was faced by the hopeless question. Kaiba bent down and whispered in her ear, "We've got a whole night. What do you want to do? And let me tell you, Wheeler—I would not have agreed to this if your friend hadn't done something." There was an icy quality to his voice that made Serenity shiver.

* * *

"Where is Serenity? Did she come?" Tristan demanded of Tea as she walked over to them.

"Yeah, she did. She's over there with Kaiba." Tea said coolly.

"WHAT? SHE'S WITH—" Tristan practically freaked out and looked in the direction Tea was pointing out. And lo and behold, there was his crush—walking slowly with Seto Kaiba and from where he was standing, he could tell that she was blushing immensely, judging by the redness of her cheeks. He glared, his heart flaring up.

But little did he know that there was also a person who felt the same as he did. Duke Devlin was flaring up inside, rage building. Seto Kaiba was here AGAIN. Why did he have to mess Serenity's and his relationship? They were doing just fine before he came into their lives. How dare that guy.

Before they even realized it, the two of them were fuming horribly and remained in a bad mood for the rest of the night.

* * *

Seto Kaiba couldn't believe that he was right beside his crush—right beside her in this very room. It would have been the last thing in his mind, but he found his heart leaping, even though it was quite against his will. He was so determined to hate that girl, the sister of the mutt—but here he was, falling in love with her.

Funny how love can drive a man crazy.

He wanted to take her hand in his—all the things that normal couples do. But this wasn't the time. "Do you want to dance?" she asked him stiffly. He was surprised—he thought that she hated him. But now she was asking him if he wanted to dance.

He knew only a few dance moves, ones that Mokuba taught him. Now the band on stage was playing a slow song, one of the classic pop songs that he wasn't familiar with.

"Fine." He said with dignity as he took her hand, admiring its smooth quality and leading her to the dance floor. Meanwhile, he was thinking to himself, _'Now what have I gotten myself into?' _

* * *

Serenity was looking on the floor as they danced. She was hoping that he knew how to dance. Finally, she looked up at her partner, and he was staring at her in a weird, spaced-out way. And somehow, her heart managed to beat quickly as she looked into those cold steely eyes. She didn't know what to say.

He led her into a slow waltz, and with him touching her, she felt so nervous. _'Why have I never felt this with any guy before?' _she thought.

When the dance ended, she sighed in relief. At least that was uneventful.

Then he took her hand again, not saying anything. She felt alarmed. Where was he taking her? She breathed another sigh of relief when he just took them into the garden outside Domino High's gym. She'd always loved this garden, ever since she came here. Although she hadn't imagined that she would be here with **_Kaiba_**, of all people.

Now he was turning to face her. But before he could say anything, she cut in. "Sorry, Kaiba, but I really don't know if we should be here. I mean, this night was just too… weird."

"What do you mean, weird?" He asked. He was acting totally out of character. _'What was happening to this world?' _Serenity thought.

"I mean, don't you see? We don't hang out. We hang out with totally different crowds. We may have been childhood friends, but that's gone now. We even had a row in the library, for goodness' sake! And now we're standing here outside the gym. Now isn't that weird?" she blurted out.

Kaiba had an unreadable expression on his face. "That may be true," he said slowly. "But I've changed my mind about that…" And without any more words, he bent down and kissed Serenity.

The shock that Serenity had felt seemed to have faded away. It seemed so familiar… that the kiss was part of her, in some way… Like she was totally meant to be with him. She too became absorbed in the kiss, and she wrapped her arms around Kaiba.

Then it hit her. She was standing outside of the gym, **_kissing Kaiba. _**What was she thinking? She pulled away from the magnetic yet passionate kiss and stood her ground.

"I can't do this, Kaiba… We're just too different." She cried out. Then stumbling her way past him, she ran, as fast as she could.

Kaiba watched her, speechless. What had he done? That was totally not like him. If Mokuba heard about this, he'd might as well die. She was running… and then she stopped. Before Kaiba realized it, Serenity was at a short distance and now she was on the ground.

In blind confusion, he ran towards her, wondering what had happened. He couldn't find anything wrong with her—she had just fainted out of the blue. But why? He had no time to think. Instead he ran inside the gym, looking for his enemy.

* * *

Joey was sitting with Mai, enjoying her company and wild stories about high school until they were interrupted by a flustered Seto Kaiba.

"Wheeler," he said. "Your sister's just fainted."

That was enough to make Joey cringe. He followed his worst enemy to where his sister was lying on the ground.

"We need to take her to the hospital before anything else goes wrong." Kaiba said calmly.

"Yeah," Joey replied faintly, "let's do that."

Kaiba notified the hospital on his cellphone, and when they said that they would reserve a room for the patient, he climbed into his limousine. Joey climbed into the seat next to him, and Serenity was laid in the backseat, looking so peaceful. Without a word, Kaiba drove to the hospital.

* * *

A/N: Now that's done… phew! At least I have one almost free weekend… So I finished this. How do you like it? Comments, suggestions, questions, violent reactions… any kind of review is welcome. Thank you very much. 


	11. Chapter XI

**Chapter 11**

* * *

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

A/N: Hey! Thanks for those who reviewed. I really appreciate it!

**Replies to reviews:**

**Lilxangelxsweetz: **yeah, she fainted… you'll see why in here… although I'm sure you have a fairly good guess about it. Thanks for the review, and here's the update. :)

**ObsessedWithYugiOh: **Oh no, guess I'd better watch out! Haha. Yup, here's the chapter, thank goodness I didn't take forever to update this. :)

**Midnight: **hahaha, yup, go Seto, we're all rooting for you! Thanks for the review, and here's the update :)

**Luna Princess of the Shadows: **Hey! I'm not getting along to reviewing your latest fics, although I will do so in due time… sorry for late reviews and stuff. You'll find out why Serenity fainted here, hehehe. Hope you like it:)

**KiWingz: **Hello, thanks so much for the review per chapter, it was quite interesting to read your reviews and hear out your opinions. :) haha! So many people hate Tea, it's probably a phenomenon by now. :) That was a pretty cool prediction, you got it right! And here's the next update, I hope you like it :)

**Cute Peridot816: **haha! Here's the update :) Thanks so much for reviewing my fics all the way, even if I know school's really tough, we just made it through the first quarter! At least one fourth of the year's done. Oh well! God bless you on your studies! See ya at school :)

* * *

Two male teenagers were standing outside the emergency rooms, pacing. There were benches provided for them to sit on, but obviously they weren't using it. The tense atmosphere was quite keeping up between them.

"She wasn't feeling alright… why didn't she tell me? Why did she have to go to the dance?" Joey groaned, burying his face in his hands. Regret was getting the better of him.

Kaiba, meanwhile, was rather calmer than Joey Wheeler, but he was feeling tense inside. _'This is all my fault… I should have known better…' _He had never felt this regretful and desperate in his entire life. He had to admit that in his past, he felt miserable. But all that changed. Whether he was ready to admit it or not, his view towards life was slowly changing ever since Serenity Wheeler came into his life.

The nurse in charge of the ward came out to inform them that she may have a family visitor. To this Joey Wheeler eagerly consented and he rushed into the room to visit his sister.

Kaiba stopped pacing and sat down on the bench. Now he had to wait until her brother was finished so that he can tell her everything…

He opened the silver briefcase he carried with him everywhere, and entered the address of Yuki Kanegeshi's website. After some quick downloading, he was again facing the bright picture of himself with Serenity Wheeler. He had never gotten a good second look at the darned thing, but he found himself gazing at Serenity's face, analyzing what she had felt when she saw him that day. An ethereal blush was upon her cheeks, as it was clearly seen in those megabytes. Did she, somehow… feel something for him?

It had seemed like an hour that he sat there waiting, but after a few minutes Joey came out and told him stiffly that if he wanted to see Serenity, he could go in. Kaiba accepted the invitation and entered the ward.

Serenity was lying on the bed, unconscious. She had bandages over her eyes. Kaiba maintained his composure and strode over to the edge of her bed. He kissed her on the forehead, brushing away the few strands of shiny brown hair aside. He pulled the stool near Serenity, and started whispering to her.

"Serenity… where do I begin? I know I've been stupid and arrogant all these years, but I'm still the friend you had in both our childhoods. Do you remember? The last day of school? I think you do remember. But I just want you to know… I really care about you, like I never cared about anyone else. My only consolation for these past years was Mokuba. I know you won't hear this, and I'd be staking my reputation if anyone saw me doing this. But I realize that… you melted my heart, Serenity. You melted this heart of cold ice."

He stood up, satisfied with everything that he said. But he added one more thing. "Serenity… I was the one who brought you to the hospital, that day when you fell asleep on that bench… I guess that will have to remain a secret for a long while, then." He straightened up once more, and nodded to the nurse in charge. She batted her eyes coyly and returned to her job.

Kaiba, with nothing else left to do, called the florist's to send a bouquet of chrysanthemums for Serenity, though he specified that he didn't want her to know that he had had it delivered. After the arrangements were made, he climbed into his limousine. It was 11:00, and if he were on his usual working day, he would be at home by now, sleeping.

Turning his key in the ignition, he started the car. He was ready to go home and dream about Serenity.

* * *

Serenity stayed in the hospital for another day. Joey was not satisfied with what happened to her, when he realized that she was having relapses of her former ailment, blindness.

It was not easy for her to cope up with her new eyesight, according to the doctor. She needed adequate rest and proper health adjustments. He had argued with that, saying that he had kept his sister in good health. The doctor was able to reply, just as coolly, that she was stressing herself somehow with some of her school activities.

But Joey felt that it had something to do with Kaiba. He was acting strangely, anyhow. Not like his usual arrogant self. He had never seen a guy so out of character. And he had hung out with Serenity during that dance, that he was sure of.

'_He was with her during the dance. I should confront him about it, demand what he did to make Serenity feel so stressed out.' _He thought angrily.

He had never stepped inside Kaiba Corporation until that day. "Where's your boss? I need to speak with him."

"He's out, Mr. Wheeler. I'm sorry." His secretary answered.

'_Where can he be? He can't still be at the hospital?' _He thought, even more puzzled at Kaiba's behavior. He had always known his mortal enemy to be a workaholic. Seto Kaiba had never missed a day of his precious work whenever he was free. And now he was—it was a weekend. A long weekend, due to Monday's no classes because of clean-up. This was really getting strange.

With an air of confidence, Joey stepped out of Kaiba Corp. and made his way to the hospital.

* * *

A devastating disadvantage to Seto Kaiba was that he couldn't know when Serenity was going to wake up because of the bandages now covering her eyes. He had indeed heard about her past blindness, and how Joey used the money Yugi gave him just to pay for her operation. Now he was sitting there, worried about her while the nurses giggled all around him, and were quite envious that he was staying in this particular ward.

No doubt, they thought, that Seto Kaiba, the rich CEO of Kaiba Corp, cared about someone else aside from his own brother.

It was true, indeed, that he was at the hospital that day when Serenity finally opened her eyes.

He was just sitting calmly, one leg crossed over the other, when he heard a small yawn from behind the bed sheets. "Is someone there?" said that familiar, sweet voice that he had not yet grown accustomed to.

He paused for a moment, hardly moving. What if she discovered that he was here, beside her? Would she want him to stay with her?

But he answered her question in a stiff voice. "Yes, there is someone."

"Oh." She said, touching the bandages now covering her eyes. "Who are you? Are you the one who sent me the flowers the day before?" she inquired, definitely not recognizing his voice.

Kaiba gladly answered her question. "Yes."

"Thank you," she said gratefully. "That was really sweet. But the nurse never mentioned your name." She waited expectantly for him to identify himself.

"My name's not important," he said gruffly. "I just wanted to make sure that you were alright."

"Oh, I see. Thank you for your concern." She paused again. "Are you sure that we don't know each other? I think I heard your voice before. I just can't place it."

Kaiba thought before answering. "Maybe you have, maybe you haven't. But in any case, I have to get going. I think your brother is on his way here." He stood up, trying to believe his own alibi. If he were Joey at any chance, he would be in the hospital day and night. He wondered why his enemy had left this morning.

He left the thought hanging, and with decision, he walked to the door.

"Goodbye," Serenity called behind him.

* * *

Joey had just arrived at the hospital when the nurse told him that his sister was awake. "Thank goodness," he said breathlessly. He had stopped by the florist's before going to Kaiba Corp. He laid the small bouquet on the table beside her, and he found that there was already a vase of beautiful chrysanthemums decorating the dull white table.

He wondered who had given them, but before he could resume his thoughts, Serenity had butted in. "Hi, Joey."

"Serenity! The nurse told me you were awake. How are you?"

"I'm fine, Joey, don't worry. At the dance the other night, I… fainted, somehow."

"Yes. Someone told me about that. Listen, Serenity—were you with Kaiba that night?"

She paused before answering. "Um, yes."

"That guy's bad news, Serenity! Why were you with him?"

"He's just a former friend of mine, and I thought he had changed. But I'm not so sure now."

"He's a jerk, Serenity. And he shall forever be one. Don't hang around him. Okay? I'm not saying this to force you, but I'm saying this 'cause it's for your own good. I don't mess with that guy as much as I have to." Joey explained to his sister.

"I guess so." She answered. "Was… he the one who told you that I fainted?"

"Yeah. He was. He seemed pretty calm about it, though. He doesn't care about you, Serenity, believe me. The sister of his own enemy? He wouldn't give a damn."

"But he helped you get me to the hospital, didn't he?"

"How did you know that?" Joey demanded. He had made sure that no one knew about that.

"I thought it was just a dream, but I opened my eyes and I thought that I was in his fancy car. If he didn't care, Joey… why did he drive us to the hospital?"

"I don't know and I don't care." Joey answered. "I just want to make sure you're safe and sound." He bent closer to his sister and hugged her. "I'd kill myself if anything happened to you, Serenity."

Serenity didn't reply, but thoughts were racing in her head. _'Does Kaiba… truly care about me?' _she thought over and over again as she lost herself in Joey's brotherly embrace.

* * *

A/N: There ends Chapter 11. Sorry if it was a bore, but Chapter 12 is coming up… stay tuned. And please leave a review before leaving this web page, thank you SO much. Any kind of review is welcome. 


	12. Chapter XII

**Chapter 12**

* * *

Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-gi-Oh.

A/N: Here is the last chapter (awww… I enjoyed writing this!) and hopefully I might continue this in the future. But I'm not so sure. Well, anyway… I'm really sorry for the late updates on ALL of my stories, I didn't have time to update them.

* * *

The bandages were taken off that afternoon, and the doctors said that she could go to school tomorrow—although they would rather keep her in the hospital for one more day. But Serenity refused to stay cooped up in the hospital for another day. She had to know the answers to her questions.

The next morning she wedged what was left of the sandwich into her mouth, and sucked her breath in. She needed to know if what Seto Kaiba had told her at the dance was true—that he had changed his mind about everything.

Dressing in her school uniform as fast as she could manage, Serenity picked up her school bag and dashed out of the hospital. It felt nice to breathe in the cool fresh air outside, after being cooped up in the hospital. She made her way to school as fast as she could.

* * *

Seto Kaiba dressed in his uniform, never forgetting to bring along that silver briefcase. It contained pages and pages of things that he wanted to say to Serenity. He had feverishly written them all last night, befitting to the heavy realization that he didn't know what to say to Serenity at all. None of them were actually very good, as he surveyed them this morning. He must have been thinking differently yesterday night. None of these sounded right at all.

He gritted his teeth. _'Now what am I supposed to do? I have to face Serenity today, and I haven't thought of a single thing that I could actually say to her.' _He thought hopelessly.

He finally spotted her at the end of the corridor. "Damn!" he swore aloud. Many people were busy blocking his way.

"KAIBA!" His fan club yelled eagerly. A hysterical girl caught hold of his sleeve. He tried to loosen her grip on him, but she was holding on too tightly.

By the time he freed himself from being harassed by screaming girls, he couldn't find Serenity. "Damn it!"

"I ought to sue you for harassment!" he glared angrily at the mob. Some girls actually looked frightened. Some took no notice of his threat and continued to scream.

Kaiba picked himself up and strode to his first class that day. _'I'll talk to her later… By then I will have figured out exactly what I want to say to her.'_

* * *

The bell rang.

Serenity grabbed her books and the notebook lying on her desk. _'Where is Kaiba anyway? I haven't seen him all morning.'_

The corridor was full of people again. Serenity had to struggle between the crowds to get to her locker.

Someone had slipped a note inside her locker.

"_Serenity,_

_Meet me in the school garden, near the water fountains. _

_-Kaiba"_

In a rush to meet him, she nearly dropped the books she was carrying for her next class. It was like a school map was outlined in her subconscious as she snaked her way past the crowds of students.

There he was. His trench coat, the usual dark blue… silver briefcase was with him, although it was set to the ground… brown hair looked a lighter shade as an effect of sunlight. And those eyes… those hypnotic cerulean eyes…

It seemed like an eternity until she finally walked in front of him. He had an indefinable expression on his face, a look between guilt and… another strange emotion.

"Serenity," he said, breathing deeply and with one smooth motion, he swept her into his arms. Serenity couldn't help but notice that he smelled really good. And that smell about him was really irresistible, it made her weak in her knees.

"Seto…" she mumbled, burying herself in his embrace. After a few moments, she broke away from him. "Listen, Seto, I came here because I want to know something."

'_This is it,' _Seto thought. "I know what you want to ask, Serenity. And I am here to give you the answer."

Serenity hesitated. "Kaiba… did you mean what you said that night? Have you… have you changed your mind about things?"

Seto slowly pulled her back into his embrace before answering. Instantly, Serenity knew the answer to her question. "Yes, I meant what I said…"

Then they ended up joined by the lip. Fireworks were busy shooting through both of their bodies, as the exciting sensation raced through both of their bodies. "Serenity, I love you." Kaiba whispered tenderly in between passionate kisses. Serenity kissed him without a care in the world… nothing mattered now except the both of them.

"I love you too, Seto."

* * *

**EPILOGUE.**

"Come on, Serenity! We can't wait forever."

"Yeah, we're coming. Seto's just going to meet us there."

Joey rolled his eyes. "Whatever… come on!"

Serenity followed Joey into the car with Mai. They were sharing a double date picnic.

About 15 minutes later, they had arrived at the picnic site.

"There he is!" Mai announced. "And I think he wants you, Serenity." She said, turning to the younger girl. Serenity blushed deeply when she saw her boyfriend.

Seto was indeed there, holding something behind his back.

"Excuse me for a second," she said to her companions, walking to Seto.

"Hey Serenity," Seto said casually, giving her a short kiss.

"Seto, stop playing! What are you hiding?" Serenity said playfully, grabbing to his neck.

Seto pretended to be offended. "I'm not hiding anything, Seren. You must be dreaming."

Serenity smiled at him, and Kaiba faked a pained smile. "Fine, you win." He brandished a bouquet of the freshest red roses Serenity had ever seen. "I love you, Serenity. Don't you ever forget that." He said, giving the bouquet to her.

"Thanks, Seto… that's so sweet of you." She said, adding, "I love you too, Seto Kaiba. Don't _you _ever forget that."

And this is where we leave our young lovers, as they have their romantic picnic together… Building their relationship upon the treasures that we all call, "memories".

**END.**

* * *

A/N: Please review! Thanks. 


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